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I <’• I (. • <,f ; 


HOW TO DETECT 


FORGED STAMPS. 


BY 

THOMAS DALSTON. 


CONTAINING ACCURATE AND 
COMPREHENSIVE DESCRIPTIONS OF ALL FORGED AND 
FICTITIOUS STAMPS. 


PRICE ONE SHILLING, POST FREE 13 STAMPS. 


<£ategljeatr : 

PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY R. CHAMBERS* 115 , HIGH STREET. 

1865 . 



0599E 


20 D* 56 


CONTENTS. 


+-}(£ 

793 


•—Antiqua.- Id. red .. . . . . . . . . . . . 5 

"'"’“A’Kuentine Confederation, 1861. — 2 e. red, 5 e. green , 10 e. blue . . 5 

Do. Republic. — 5 e. red .. . . . . . . . . . . 6 

Austria Newspaper Labels (Arms.) 1855, 1858. — 1 hr. black , blue, 2 hr. green , 

red-brown, brown, 4 hr. red-brown . . . . . . ,, 7 

Do. 1857 (Mercury.) — blue, yellow , . . . . , . . . 7 

Baden, 1850. — 1 hr. buff. 1862. — 18 hr. green, 30 hr. orange .. .. 7 

Do. 1855. — 1 hr. white .. .. .. .. .. ..35 

Do. Land Post. — 1, 3, 12 hr. yellow . . . . . . . . 7 

Do. Envelope. — 3 hr. blue .. . . . . . . . . . . 7 

Bavaria, 1849. — 1 hr. black . . . . . . . . . . 8 

Do. Unpaid Letter Label, 1862. — 3 hr. black . . . . . . . . 8 

Barbadoes (Value not indicated.) — red, blue , green . . . . . . 8 

Bergedorf, 1861 . — \ sch. violet, 3 sch. rose .. . . . . . . 8 

Brazil. — A ll first issues .. .. . . •• .. , , 9 

Do. Second issues.— 10, 30, 60 rets .. . . . . . . . . 9 

Do. 1861. — 10, 20, 30, 90, 180 reis black .. .. . . . . 35 

Bremen, 1855. — 3 grote black, 5 s. gr. green, 5 grote black. 1863. — 2 grote orange 9 

1861 . — IQ gr. black .. .. .. .. .. ..10 

British Guiana, I860.— 1 c. black, 2 red, 4 blue, 8 plush, 12 grey, 24 light-green 10 
Do. Newspaper Labels, Pearl border .. .. 10 

Brunswick, 1852. — 1 s. gr. rose, 2 blue, 3 Vermillion. 1854. — ~ s. gr. brown, 

i white, 1 yellow, 2 blue, 3 pink . . . . . . . . . . 10 

Do. 1862. — Zs.gr. rose .. .. . .. .. 11 

Do. Envelopes (band stamped .) — Red on green, white, blue, yellow, 

coloured paper .. .. .. .. .. .. ..11 

Buenos Ayres (Head of Liberty.) — 1 peso blue, rose, 2 blue . . . . ll 

Confederate States, America (Bust in oval), 1861. — 5 c. blue, green . . 11 

Do. Do. Bust in circle, 5 c. blue; Name, 2 c. green, 

10 c. blue, rose, 20 c. green . . 12 

Do. , New Orleans (J. C. Riddell.) — 2 c. red, blue, 5 a c. mauve, 

brown.. .. .. .. 12 

Do. Richmond (Flag in oval.) — 5 cents green, yellow .. 12 

Do. Nashville. — 5 c. crimson . . . . , . 13 

Cuba, 1857* 4 rl. plata blue, 1 green , 2 green .. .. .. .. 13 

CoRRIENTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 

Costa Rica, 1863. — | real blue, 2 green . . .. . . . . 13 

Danubian Principalities, Moldavia, 1854. — 54 paras green, 81 blue, 108 rose. 

1861.— 40 blue, 80 red . . .. 13 

Do. Do. Newspaper Label, 5 black 14 

Do. Moldo Wallachia, 1862. — 30 blue .. .. 14 

Denmark, 1852. — 2 shilling blue . . .. .. .. .. ..14 

Do. Essay, 4 R. B. S. ; King’s bead and 8 R. B. S. .. 14 

Do. Schleswig Holstein, 1848. — 1 sch. blue, 2 rose .. .. .. 14 

Do. Do. 1864.— 1 1 blue . 15 



CONTENTS. 


iii. 


Dutch Indies, 5 o. . . .. .. ' .. . , . . .. 15 

Finland Envelopes. — 5 kop blue, 10 rose, 20 black . . , , . , 15 

France, 1863. — 15 e. a Perce voir .. .. . . ..15 

Germany, 1850 . — ~ silb. groseh black . . . . . . . . 36 

Granda Confederation, 1860. — 10 c. cinnamon, 20 blue. 1861. — 2| c. black , 5 

buff, 10 blue, 20 red, 1 peso rose. 1862. — 5 c. orange, 10 blue , 20 red . . 16 
Great Britain. — M ulready; \d. black, 2d. blue .. 16 

Greece, 1862. — 1 l. light brown, 2 cinnamon , 5 green, 10 red, 20 blue, 40 voilet, 

80 rose .. .. .. .. .. .. ..16 

Hamburg, 1859. — § sch. black, 1 chocolate, 2 red, 3 blue, 4 green, 7 orange, 9 

yellow . 1863 . — \\ mauve, 2\ green .. .. .. 17 

Hanover, 1858. — 3 pf. rose, green .. ., ,, .. 17 

India, 1854, — § anna red, 1 red .. ., .. ., ., 17 

Ionian Islands, 1860. — yellow, blue, lake .. .. ,. .. 18 

La Guaira, 1864. — § rl. pink, 2 green .. .. .; 18 

Liberia . — 6 c. pink, 12 blue, 24 green .. .. .. .. 18 

Livonia . — red impression . . .. .. .. .. .. 18 

Do. Green centre < . . . . . . . . . . ..19 

Lubeck, 1859. — | sch. violet, 1 orange-red, 2 brown , 2 | red, 4 dark-green . . 19 

Luxemburg, 1859-63. — 1 c. buff, 2 black, 4 yellow , 10 blue , 12~ rose, 25 marone , 

30 violet, 37j green, 40 Vermillion . . . . . . . . . . 19 

Mauritius, 1857. — Red, dark-green, magenta, slate . . .. . . 20 

Mexico, 1857. — 2 rls. green on white paper, \ blue, 1 yellow, 2 green, 4 red, 8 violet. 

1861. — 1, 2, 4 red on yellow paper, §c. .. .. ..20 

Modena. — 5 c. green, 9 c. bg. violet, 10 c. rose, brown, 15 violet, yellow, 25 primrose, 

40 blue, 1 lira white.. .. .. .. .. .. 20 

Do. Provisional, 1859. — 5 c. green, 15 purple, 20 voilet, 40 rose, 80 orange. 21 
Do. Newspaper Label, 10 c. black .. .. .. .. ..21 

Monte Video. — S econd issue : 120 c. blue, 180 green, 240 carmine. 1859. — 60 c. 

lilac, slate , brown, pink, 80 c. orange, 180 green, 240 red . . . . 21 

Nevis, 1861. — Id. lake .. .. .. .. .. .. ..22 

New Brunswick. — 12 f c. blue (Connell Essay.) . . . . . . 22 

New South Wales (View of Sydney.) — Id. red, 2d. pale-blue . . . . 22 

Nicaragua, 1862. — 2 c. blue, 5 black . . .. .. .. .. 22 

Nie Calidonia, I860.— 10 centimes grey .. .. .. .. ..23 

Norway, 1850. — 4 skilling blue .. .. .. .. .. 23 

Oldenburg, 1852. — 3 o thaler blue, 15 rose, 10 yellow . . . . . . . . 23 

Ottoman Empire. — 20 paras yellow, 1 piastre lilac, 2 blue, 5 rose . . . . 24 

Paraguay . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . 24 

Parma. — 5 c. yellow, 15 c. red .. .. ., .. 24 

Do. Pro. Gov., 1859. — 5 green, 10 brown, 20 blue, 40 red, 80 orange, 6 car- 
mine, 9 blue . . . . . . . . • • . . . . 24 

Pony Express, 1 , 2 , 3, 4 dollars, each in five colours . . . . . . 25 

Prussia Envelopes, 1851. — 7 s. gr. Vermillion .. .. .. .. 25 

Romagna, 1860. — § bai yellow, 1 grey, 2 yellow, 3 [dark-green, 4 red, 5 lilac, 6 

green, 8 rose, 20 blue . . . . . . . . . . 25 

Roman States. — 50 baj blue . . . . . . . . . . , . 25 

Sandwich Isdands, 1860. — 1 c. blue, black,] [2 blue, black, 5 blue, 13 red .. 26 

Saxony, 1850. — 3 pf. red . . . . . . . . . . . i 26 

Do. 1851. — 1 n. gr. rose, 2 blue, 3 yellow ' . . . . . . . . 27 

Spain (Bear.) — 1,2,3 c. bronze. 1851. — 2 r. red .. .. .. .. 27 



IV. 


CONTENTS. 


Spain 1851.— 6 c. black 1852.— 5 r. green. 1855. — 6 c. reel. 1854 
(Official ) - £ onza orange , l rose. 4 green, 1 libra blue. 1855. 

— 5 orange , 4 green. 1 row, 1 blue . . , . 23 

Do. Possessions, 1857. — § r/. jofata /. 5/wo, 1 green , 2 row . . 29 

Switzerland, 1850-52. — 5, 10 rappen black . . .. . ..29 

German and French Cantons. — 2\ rappen .. .. . . .. 29 

Basle. — 2\ rap. green .. .. .. .. , . .. ..29 

Geneva .. .. .. .. .. . , ... ., 30 

Neufchatel . — 5 c. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..30 

Yaud. — 4 ,5 c. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 30 

Winterthur.— 2§ rappen .. .. .. .. .. ..30 

Zurich, 1843.— (Essay.)— 4, 6 rappen. 1856. — 4 rap. .. .. .. 31 

Do. (Cantonal Taxe.) 6 rap. .. .. .. ., ..31 

Trinidad. — Crimson, blue slate .. .. .. .. .. 31 

Tuscany. — 1 quattr , l soldi, 1 crazie, 2 c , 4 e., 6 e., 9 <?., .. .. 32 

Do. Pro. Gov. — 5, 10, 20, 40, 80 cent .. .. .. .. 32 

Two Sicilies — Sicily, 1859 . — k gr. orange , 1 olive, 2 blue, 5 red, 10 dark-blue , 

20 black, 50 dark-red . . .. ,, .. 32 

Do. Pro. Gov., October, 1860. — | tornese blue . . .. .. 32 

Do. Do. November, 1860. — | tornese blue .. .. .. 33 

Do. Naples, 1857. — 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 grano lake .. .. 33 

Venezuela, 1863.— § real yellow, blue, 2 green .. . .. ..33 

Western Australia. — 1 d. black, id pink , blue, Gd green, brown , red .. 33 

Wuktembukg, 1850. — 1 h\ buff, 3 yellow. 6 green , 9 rose, 18 kr. neutral .. 34 

Do. Beturned Label, black . . . . . , . . 34 


FICTITIOUS STAMPS. 

Bavaria, Caprera, Confederate States, Japan, Jerusalem, Mexico, Nashville, 

Turkish, U. S. Morman Stamp, U. S. Local Stamps . . . . . . 37 


STAMPS NEVER INTENDED FOR POSTAL USE. 

Austria, Bavaria, Berne, Brunswick, Denmark, France, Geneva, Iceland, Jamaica, 

Ocean Postage, Zurich . . . . . . . . . . 37 


STAMPS WHICH HAVE BEEN CHANGED IN COLOUR BY CHEMICALS. 

Argentine Confederation, Austria, Baden, Bavaria, Belgium, British Guiana, 
Brunswick, Confederate States, France, Germany Nmih, Greece. Hanover, 
Holland, Italy, Modena, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Nova Scotia, 
Oldenburg, Prussia, Romagna, Saxony, Switzerland, United States, 
Wurtemburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 



INTRODUCTION. 

4 - 

Mobe than twenty-four years ago the first Postage Stamp was issued in Eng- 
land. Formerly the postage of letters was paid in money, either before 
posting or on delivery ; but now it is done by merely affixing a postage 
stamp. It was indeed a great mind that originated this method of prepaying 
postage, which for simplicity and economy, both of money and time, cannot 
be equalled. England was the first country which commenced the postage 
stamp system, and Sir Rowland Hill deservedly claims credit for its intro- 
duction. After England, Zurich appears to have adopted the new system, 
and a few years later, Belgium and the French Republic issued^stamps. The 
very rare Madrid local stamps, bearing the arms of that city printed in 
bronze, was also issued at the same time. Another year later, and the 
Spanish, Baden, Wurtemburg, Prussian, and Thurn und Taxis stamps ap- 
peared, and not long after commenced the gradual and rapid adoption of 
the system in almost all the other continental states, and in fact in nearly 
every part of the civilized world. 

The interesting and instructive amusement of collecting postage stamps 
did not commence until about four or five years ago, when the great number 
of stamps that had been issued in different countries, attracted a little atten- 
tion ; but now, the number of collectors in England alone may be counted 
by hundreds, whilst in France, Germany, Italy, and America, the pursuit is 
gradually extending 

It is quite unnecessary here to expiate upon the pleasure or information 
to be derived from the study and collection of stamps, because it is presumed 
that all who refer to this small volume have already felt some taste and 
fondness for the pursuit. The non-collector who demands an explanation of 
the use of the study of stamps, I must refer to the introduction in Dr. 
Grey’s Catalogue, which, I have no doubt, will convince the most averse 
non-collector, that there is some instruction in stamp collecting, and I can 
only add that the pursuit is so congenial to the taste, instructing and elevating 
to the mind, and so productive of good, that all collectors, become enthusiastic 
in the pursuit. 



INTRODUCTION. 


O 


A postage stamp in addition to its use in prepaying letters, is a species of 
paper money, circulated by the state, which represents a fixed amount of 
sterling currency, and is negotiable through the Post-office, as a national 
bank is held responsible for the notes issued ; and in order to prevent forgers 
from imitating them, the best artists and engravers are procured to design 
and execute stamps, which will at once comprise beautiful with intricate 
engravings, and thus in some degree render the efforts of forgers to imitate 
very difficult, if not impossible. There have been more than 2300 postage 
stamps issued in all parts of the world, and out of that number about 500 
have been forged, yet I do not know of hardly any forgeries that have been 
executed for the express purpose of prepaying postage, and thus swindling 
the respective governments. The first forgeries appear to have been executed 
about three years and a half ago ; indeed, I do not know of any that were 
executed prior to that time. The forgers mostly imitate old obsolete stamps, 
which are invariably simple in design, and commanding high prices ; in fact, 
I have known instances of used specimens having sold for the great sum of 
one sovereign. There are, however, considerable quantities of stamps forged 
that are in present use, and some are exceedingly close imitations, and could 
easily pass as genuine in their respective countries, if they were not closely 
observed, and compared with undoubtedly genuine specimens. 

I saw in a French paper, not long ago, that a vessel, laden with powder, 
and bound for Liberia, blew up, and on looking over the delris, a large 
packet of Liberian stamps, unobliterated,* directed to the English Consul, 
were found. A collector being present, discovered that they were Hamburg 
forgeries. The paragraph concluded by saying that without doubt they 
were intended to deceive the government, and that it was probable the 
negroes of Liberia had been thus imposed upon for a long time. This there- 
fore shows that imitations which are sufficiently well executed to pass as 
genuine in the country of which its stamps are imitated, must needs deceive 
collectors, without they exercise great care, and as they cannot always obtain 
the loan of genuine specimens to compare with, it is the object of the present 
volume to fill up that deficiency, by supplying to each possessor of a postage 
stamp collection, a ready and sure mode of ascertaining whether the stamps 
are genuine or not, which can not be done by any work hitherto published. 
The method of comparing with genuine stamps is, on consideration, per- 
fectly impracticable, for forgeries, owing to the small price for which they 
can be obtained, have now so large a circulation, that it is perfectly unsafe 
to trust to this method. I have known instances where two persons have 
had. two different forgeries, and of course have been much puzzled to know 
which was genuine. In many instances there are two different forgeries of 

* The Liberian stamps usually sold to collectors are neatly post-marked. 



INTRODUCTION. 


3 


one stamp, in some three, and all these being different in workmanship, I 
have had to describe separately ; so it will be seen I have had no easy task 
in bringing to light all the forgeries. This book also provides the general 
reader with a tolerably compact account of all the forgeries, and although 
my aim has been throughout to make the descriptions as concise and compre- 
hensive as possible, yet I have at the same time described the genuine in 
such a manner, that if at any future time there should be more, and of 
course in some degree different imitations of the same stamp issued, the 
descriptions will serve to detect them. 

A necessary, but not an agreeable part of my labour is to detect and point 
out the mistakes and errors of my predecessors. The English translation of 
Moens “ Falsification ” is utterly unfit for reliance, and ought not to be de- 
pended upon. In some of his descriptions he neither properly describes the 
genuine or the forgery ; in fact, some appear to have been taken from two 
different forgeries. The reader will already be aware that there are sometimes 
several forgeries of some particular stamps. These descriptions have there- 
fore destroyed all confidence in the work. Mr. Pemberton, in “ Forged 
Stamps , how to detect them ,” is perfectly honest, and any inaccuracies 
which may occur in his work — and they are very few — must be attributed 
to error, not to design. In his first edition (the second has not yet come 
out) he only occupies about 15 pages with real forgeries. The rest of the 
book is composed of fictitious stamps, and stamps the colours of which are 
changed by chemicals, most of which, also, are fictitious, and out of nearly 
500 forgeries, he has only described about 60 of them. I think it is useless 
devoting so much space to fictitious stamps ; but as there are a great quantity 
in the market, I have appended a list of all the fictitious stamps that have 
been issued, and the stamps that have been changed in colour by chemicals, 
but, as it is very probable there may be more fictitious stamps issued, I 
would caution collectors not to purchase any stamps as rare that are not 
mentioned in the best catalogues, or any that are new which are not men- 
tioned in the “ Stamp Collector’s Magazine ,” “ Stamp Collector s Miscellany ,” 
or “ Stamp Collector's Examiner” all of which publish descriptions of new 
issues as soon as it is possible for dealers to get them. 

The principal persons who forge stamps reside on the Continent. Spiro 
Brothers of Hamburg, have produced the most, and some of them are exceed- 
ingly well executed, amongst which are the Bergedorf, British Guiana, 
Finland, Geneva, Greece, Hamburg, Liberia, Old Lubeck, New Granada, 
Nicaragua, Pony Express, Schleswig, Saxony, Western Australia, and many 
others. All that I have seen are post-marked — most of them are perforated 
— and the Schleswig 1 £ seh., has even the water mark in the paper. Indeed, 



INTRODUCTION. 


4 


the above dealers have made quite a trade of it, and a very profitable trade 
too. There is a dealer in Zurich who sells good imitations of the Swiss 
Canton stamps, and there is another in Brussels whose forgeries are well 
executed, and widely circulated. Glasgow has turned out many facsimiles , 
but about all of them are inferior to the above in execution. I also find that 
there has been different forgeries executed in London, Manchester, and 
Newcastle, but they are only inferior imitations. I have also received some 
pretty good forgeries from New York, but the only passable ones are those 
sent from the Continent. 

In concluding this brief introduction, I must thank the various gentlemen 
who have kindly sent me doubtful stamps on inspection, and who have also 
given me assistance in the compilation of this small, but, it is hoped, useful 
book ; amongst the latter I must include Mr. D. Dean, editor and publisher 
of the “ Stamp Collector's Miscellany who has rendered me great assistance. 
I shall be very glad to give my opinion upon any doubtful stamp which may 
be sent me on inspection. 

THOS. DALSTON, 

Mabxet Place, 

April, 1865 . Barnard Castle. 





HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


ANTIGUA.. 

Name, Head of Queen Victoria , 1^. red. 

This is a very poor imitation. The outline of the face, however, is very 
correct ; but on a close examination of the back-ground, it will be perceived 
that instead of very fine and minute engraviDg, it is composed of smudged 
dots. 


ARGENTINE CONFEDERATION. 

1861 issue. — Name Argentine Confe 01 *., design rising sun with cap of Liberty, 
coloured impression on white paper, 2 c. red, 5c, green, lOr. blue. 

There are several separate and distinct forgeries of this set of stamps, which 
slightly differ in execution, so that I append separate descriptions. In the 
two first descriptions, it will be seen I have mentioned, that in the genuine 
5 centav there is a dot after 2, but in the 10 c. and 15 c. there is no dot after 
10 or 15, whilst in the forgery all three have dots after numeral of value. 
This may be accounted for in the following manner : — most forgers of stamps 
when about to engrave a set of stamps in which the design of all of them 
is the same, except some trifling thing which has_escaped notice, choose any 
genuine stamp of that set they have at hand, and engrave the whole set 
therefrom, referring to a catalogue for information as to colour, &c . ; or it 
may be, having the stamp to buy for the engraver, they have selected the 
cheapest. Further on it will be seen that this mistake has often occurred 
when forging a set of stamps, the design of which is in all of them the 
same. 


No. 1 FORGERY. 


Genuine. 

The hands hold a small staff, at the top 
of which is a cap of Liberty. 

The glory round the head is not so thick 
as that near the border. 

There is a dot after 5 in the 5 centav 
stamp, but not in the 10 c. and 15 c. 


Forged. 

The staff and cap of Liberty are both left 
out ; probably the engraver had a copy with 
that part of the stamp covered by the ob- 
literating mark. 

The glory round the head is of the same 
thickness throughout. 

There is a dot after the numeral of value 
in all three stamps. 



6 


HOW TO DETECT FOEQED STAMPS 


No. 2 FORGERY. 


Genuine. 

The cap of Liberty is in most cases very 
much smeared. 

The G of Argentine is very clumsy, and 
not at all like the C of Confeon. 

The top dash of the two dashes under 
Confeon is the same length as the bottom 
one. 

The oval containing staff, cap of Liberty, 
&c., touches the border of the stamp at 
the right and left sides. 

There is a dot after the 5 of 6 centav, but 
not after the 10 or 15 c. 


Forged. 

The cap of Liberty is very clear, even 
clearer than in the genuine. 

The G of Argentine is almost exactly like 
the C of Confeon. 

The top dash is much shorter than the 
bottom one. 

The oval docs not touch the border. 


There is a dot after figure of value in all 
the set. 


No. 3 FORGERY. 


Genuine. 

The E of Confeon is the same size as the 
other letters of that word, excepting 0 N. 
The G of Argentina does not touch the E. 
The glory round the head is not thick. 


Forged. 

The E is much larger than the other 
letters of that word. 

The G does touch the E. 

The glory round the head is thick. 


The last described forgery is decidedly the best executed of the lot, but 
it may be remembered that the whole of the forged Argentine Confederation 
stamps are too bright in colour. 


ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 

Name , 5 centavos , red. 

This is a badly executed imitation ; the lettering of inscription is very 
bad and irregular, in some places smudged ; in the genuine, however, the 
inscription is very clear and well defined. The whole appearance of the 
stamp is very bad, and it looks as if it had been printed as cheaply as 
possible. 


AUSTRIA. 

1855.—- Newspaper Labels. — Arms } inscription “ KaisKon Zeitungs stempel 
coloured imp. square 1 hr. blacky 2 hr. greeny and red brown. 

1858 .— Same design as last , 1 hr. bluey 2 hr. browny and 4 hr. red brown. 

There are numerous differences between the genuine and forgeries in the 
above stamps, but the undermentioned will suffice. The genuine stamps are 
wood engravings, whilst the forgeries are lithographed. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The letters and eagle are clear. The letters and eagle are not clear. 

In each comer there is a round ornament, The round ornaments are smudgy, and 

and on two sides of it is a kite-shaped orna- they touch the kite-shaped ones, 
ment ; the latter does not touch the former. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


7 


1857 . — Head of Mercury to 

Genuine. 

The letters of inscription are pretty regu- 
lar, and all are about the same thickness 
throughout. 

The letter T in stempel at bottom is very 
clear and well shaped. 

The ornaments in all four corners are 
almost all like each other. 


left, Hue } yellow, and pink. 

Forged. 

The letters of inscription are not all same 
size, and are badly executed. 

The letter T in stempel at bottom is very 
badly defined ; the left side of the top part 
of it is less than the other side. 

There is great differences between the 
four ornaments in the four corners. 


BADEN. 


1850. — 1 kreuzer luff. 

In the forgery the letters of inscription are rather irregular, but in the 
genuine they are very regular. The ornaments at top and bottom of the 
inscription at sides, are all separate at the bottom ; in the forgery, they 
however, touch one another at the bottom in the genuine* 


1862. — 18 hr. green and 30 kr. orange. 


Genuine. 

The corner ornaments are very clear and 
finely engraved, and on comparison with the 
present issue 1 kr. black stamp (which is 
comparatively common), they will be found 
to be alike. 

The dots of the shield are very regular, 
all nearly of the same size, and in straight 
rows. 


Forged. 

The corner ornaments are very irregular, 
and differ very much with the 1 kr. black. 


The dots on the shield are very irregular, 
and are scattered about here and there. 


Unpaid Letter Labels. — Inscription : “ Land-Tost Porto Marke ,” figurt 
indicating value , Hack impression on yellow paper, 1 kreuzer, 3 kr., 
12 kr. 


Genuine. 

The letter S in “ Land Post ” is very 
regular. 

The hyphen between Land and Post is 
below the centre of the letter P. 

The colour of the paper is a darkish 
yellow. 

Most of the above genuine stamps 
are not. I have, however, seen a ba 
very badly executed. 


Forged. 

The letters in “Land Post” are very 
irregular. 

The hyphen is almost at the centre of P. 

The colour of the paper is very light 
yellow. 

:e perforated, but the above forgeries 
ly perforated 1 kr , which was also 


Envelope, 3 kr. llue. 

In the forgery the head is badly embossed, and the parting of the hair is 
invisible ; it is also printed on thicker paper than the genuine. Altogether 
it is well printed, but the engraving has been badly done. The inscription 
across the envelope, in the forgery, is printed in roughly formed letters, the 
colour being lemon instead of orange. The imitation appears to be litho- 
graphed, but the genuine is die printed. 


8 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


BAVARIA. 

1849. — Inscription " Bayern Franco riu Kr cuter" large figure indicating value 
in a square, 1 hr. black. 

Forged. 

The ornamentation of the large figure is 
much coarser than the genuine. 

The large figure is very perceptible. 


Genuine. 

The ornamentation of the large figure 1 
is very clear. 

The large figure is not particularly dis- 
tinct and clear at first sight. 

The ornamentation in the back-ground is 
very fine and clear when closely observed. 


The paper on which it is printed is not 
exactly white and the ink is not shiny. 


The ornamentation is rather coarse, and 
can be distinctly traced without much look- 
ing at. 

The paper is very white and the ink is 
rather shiny. 

There are also photographs of this valuable stamp in the market which are 
of course correct in every detail ; and if any of our readers are suspicious of 
the above stamp, or, in fact, of any other black stamp or essay whatever, 
which they may think is photographed, they may easily detect it by applying 
cyanuret of potassa (a chemical which may be obtained at any druggists) to 
the face of the engraving. If photographed it will instantly remove the 
impression, leaving the paper white ; whereas if the stamp has been printed 
in the usual way, it will not injure it in the least. 

1862. Unpaid Letter Label. — Black impression on white paper , 3 kreuzer . 

This forgery is printed in shiny ink, and is altogether a poor imitation* 
The execution is in all respects bad, and when compared with the other ad- 
hesive stamps of the same country may be easily detected. 


BARBADOES. 

Name, coloured impression on blue paper, value not indicated, red, blue, and 
green. 

These three stamps are forged, and are well designed, but they are very 
badly printed, and are all lithographed. They are also easily recognizable 
by the smaller print of the characters. 


BERGEDORF. 

1861. — Name, black impression on coloured paper J sch. violet, 3 sch. rose. 

GENUINE. FORGED. 

The number of small circles in the large The number of small circles in the £ sch. 
ring round the arms in both the above is 46, and in the 3 sch. is 52. 
stamps is 55. 

There are also forgeries of the 3, and 4 sch. of the present issue. The 
1 and 3 sch. are printed from the same dies as the above, so that the above de- 
scription will suffice. The forged 4 sch. has 55 small circles round the arms. 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS 


9 


BRAZIL. 

All the first issue and the 10, 30, and 60 reis of the second issue are 
forged. They are all however badly imitated, especially the second issue, 
where the forger has omitted to shade the figures, and instead of engine 
turned lines of dots in the background, there is only smudged dots. 


BREMEN. 

1855. — Black impression on Hue paper, 3 grote. 


Genuine. 

The A of Stadt is exactly like the A of 
AMT. 

Both the letters T of Stadt are alike. 

The D of Stadt is flat on the top. 

The letters of Stadt Post Amt are of a 
uniform size. 


Forged. 

The A of Stadt is longer and unlike the 
A of AMT. 

The first T of Stadt is much larger than 
the other. 

The D of Stadt is round on the top. 

The letters of Stadt Post Amt are very 
irregular in size. 


1855. — Green impression on white paper , 5 s. gr. 


Genuine. 

On a careful examination of the 5 s. gr, 
it will be perceived that almost half a dozen 
of the thin background lines run through 
the border, half way down the 5, the same 
number running through the border to the 
top of the S, and on the outside of the gr. 
will be found some very short strokes. 

The top part of the outside of the oval 
containing the key does not touch the line 
holding the key. 


Forged. 

The 5 s. gr. is quite plain, and there is 
nothing of the kind on it as mentioned 
opposite. 


The top part of the ornament touches the 
line. 


1863. — 2 grote , orange. 


Genuine, 

The outside of the ornamentation en- 
closing Bremen and Zwie Grote consists 
of round lines, very regular, and never 
pointed. 

The above-mentioned ornamentation 
touches the inside line enclosing the word 
Stadt. 


Forged. 

The outside of the ornamentation is ir- 
regular and in many cases pointed. 

The ornamentation does not touch the 
line. 


1855. — 5 grote, rose, black impression. 


Genuine. 

The ornaments at corners at the outside 
of the line are regular and like each other. 

The M in Marke is like the usual printed 
capital M. 


Forged. 

The ornaments are much unlike each 
other. 

The last stroke of the M is longer than 
the other strokes. 



10 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


1861. — 10 grote , Hack impression. 


Genuine. 

The dots outside the oval enclosing key 
are pretty clear. 

The letters of inscription are firm and 
neat. 

The figure 0 in 10 at the right side top 
corner is like the other figures in the other 


Forged. 

The dots are in some parts blotched. 

The two E’s in Bremen are unlike each 
other, and the shading of all the letters are 
rather blotchy. 

The figure 0 is badly shaped. 


BRITISH GTJIANA. 

1860. — Name, ship in full sail to right in garter , 1 cent Hack , 2 c . red, 4 c. 
Hue, 8 c. plush , 12 c. grey , 24 c. light green. 

* 

Genuine. 

There is a dot in the centre of each of 
the two star ornaments upon the garter, 
which is very clear. 

The two G’s in Guiana and Postage are 
both alike. 

The lines forming the sky are very close 
together, and not to be traced by the naked 
eye. 

They are very nicely printed. 


Forged, 

Neither the dot or the ornaments are 
distinct or clear ; in fact, the dot cannot be 
seen at all. 

The G in Guiana is not so well shaped as 
the other. 

These lines may be easily perceived, and 
even counted. 

Most of the forgeries are badly printed 
and have a washy look, which will not easily 
deceive the experienced collector. 


Newspaper Labels with Pearl Bordering. 

There appears to be much uncertainty amongst collectors and others, 
respecting these labels, i. e ., which are authentic and which not. All the 
genuine I have seen have a signature in the centre, mostly in red ink, and 
invariably blotched. The B in British and the S in Cents, are not on a 
level with the other letters, being a little lower. The 0 in Two is like a 
C, and the U in Guiana touches the top line. I have only seen one set of 
forgeries, and it is in most cases, I understand, post-marked with four short 
thick smudgy lines, instead of the letters and figure A. 0. 3. I may also 
state, that in all genuine stamps, the shading in the little circles or pearls 
forming the border is towards the inside, and the circles are seen with two 
fine outlines, which gives them the appearance of one thick one. 


BRUNSWICK. 

1852. — Name, Braunschweig , arms , value in figures on each side, coloured im- 
pression, 1 sill. gr. rose, 2 s. gr. blue, 3 s. gr. Vermillion, 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


11 


1854. — | s gr. brown , J s.gr. white , 1 s. gr. yellow , 2 5 . yr. blue , 3 s.gr. pink. 


Genuine. 

The colour of the 3 s. gr. is vermillion. 

The crown in the oval is clear and well 
defined. 

The inscription is very regular. 

The printing is very nice and clear. 


Forged. 

The colour of the 3 s. gr. is light brown 
and the colours of the other stamps are 
rather thin. 

The crown is indistinct. 

The inscription is badly done, and is 
rather irregular as to size, &c. 

The printing is blotchy, especially the 
shading. 


1862 .— Same device , coloured impression , 3 silb. gr . 

The forgery is printed in red orange, instead of rose. The letters of the 
inscription are also uneven. Altogether it is a poor imitation, and is badly 
printed. 

Envelopes. — Inscription : St. P. Fr. in circle ; printed in red with hand 
stamp on coloured paper , green, white, blue, and yellow. 

These stamps when genuine are so plain and simple in design that it is 
extremely easy to forge them. The forgeries are wretchedly printed and 
there is no curl at the bottom of the T. 


BUENOS 

Fame, Head of Liberty in a circle, 

Genuine. 

The letters of Peso are all of equal size. 

The top curl of the hair is shaded. 

The letters in the inscription are all well 
formed. 


AYRES. 

1 peso blue, and rose, 2 pesos blue. 

Forged. 

The letters of Peso gradually diminish 
in size the P being the largest and the 0 the 
smallest. 

The top curl of the hair is not shaded. 
The letters are in most cases badly formed 
and irregular in size. 


CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA. 


1861. — Name , Bust of Jefferson Davis 
green. 

Genuine. 

The background appears almost solid, 
being composed of very fine close lines. 

The head is some space from the inscrip- 
tion above. 

The inscription is printed in short com- 
pact letters. 


to right in oval, 5 cents blue, and 6 c. 

Forged. 

The lines in the background are wide 
apart, and very distinct. 

The hair of the head almost touches the 
letters above. 

The letters are thin and rather apart. 


12 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


Name, Bust of Davis in circle , 5 c. blue. 


Genuine. 

In the corners round the head are some 
stars which do not touch the lines outside 
them. 

The engraving is very good, letters round- 
ed and clearly defined. 


Forged. 

Most of the outside stars do touch the 
lines. 

The engraving is some places deficient, 
especially shading, and the letters long, 
thin, and badly printed. 


Name , 2 c. green, 10 e. blue and rose, 20 c. green. 

These stamps are badly executed, and could not well pass as genuine. I 
am of opinion that they were not originally intended to cheat collectors, as 
I have almost always seen them sold in sets and as facsimiles ; but one 
dealer sent them to me on inspection as genuine, saying the government 
having run out of their stamps before they could get fresh ones, had to get a 
local engraver to execute some, specimens of which he enclosed me. The 
colours are in all cases very thin and washy in the forgery, and the engraving 
very bad. Some are printed better than others, but in all cases the stamps 
are blotched more or less, (that is, in the forgery.) The inscription is also 
very bad. 


NEW ORLEANS. 


1861.-— Name, figure indicating value in 
red, 2 c. blue. 

Genuine. 

The letters are all regular but rather in- 
distinct. 

The printing is altogether rather indis- 
tinct and appears to be coarse. 

5 c. mauve, 

Genuine. 

The letters in the word Post touch the 
line above them. 

The mark between New-Orleans touches 
the 0. 

The right hand top ornament is rather 
shaded. 


circle, inscription : J. C. Riddell. 2 c. 

Forged. 

Some of the letters are thin and others 
thick, but the whole are very distinct. 

The printing is very clear and very fine. 

5 c. brown 

Forged. 

None of the letters touch the line. 

It does not touch the 0. 

The right hand top ornament is quite 
clear. 


RICHMOND. 

Inscription : Richmond Postage, 5 cents, flag in oval, 5 cents green and yellow m 

Genuine. Forged. 

The ink with which it is printed is not The ink is shiny. 
s hiny. 

The outside line enclosing the whole The outside line is in some parts, especially 
stamp is very firm and clear throughout. at corners, very indistinct, and there are 

several gaps. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


13 


NASHVILLE. 

1861. — Name, figure indicating value in oval, 5 cents crimson . 

Genuine. Forged. 

The printing is very indistinct and The printing is very distinct and clear, 
smudged. 

The border is composed of one white line. The border consists of two white lines 

one thick and the other thin. 

The stars are thick and rather smudged. The stars are pretty small. 


CUBA. 


1857 . — Coloured impression on white paper, \ rl. plat a blue, 1 rl. pi, green, 2 
rl. pi. green. 


Genuine. 

The execution is good, and all the stamp 
is clearly printed. 

The beads within the central circle are 
all of one size. 


Forged. 

The engraving is in some places bad, and 
the printing is rather blotchy. 

The lower beads are smaller than the 
upper ones. 


COSTA RICA. 


1863. — J real blue, 2 r. green. 


Genuine. 

The letters RE of Real touch each other. 

The letters of Medio Real are all the 
same size. 

The sea behind the mountains on the 
right side of the left hand mountain, is on a 
level with that on the left side of the said 
mountain. 

The letters of Real mostly touch each 
other. 


Forged. 

The letter RE do not touch each other. 

The letters are not all the same size. 

The sea behind the mountains on the 
right side of the left hand mountain, is 
much lower than that on the left side. 

The letters of Real never touch each 
other. 


DANUBIAN PRINCIPALITIES. 

MOLDAVIA. 


1854. — 54 paras green, 81 par . blue , 108 par. rose. 

These three simply designed stamps are very well imitated. The inscrip- 
tion in the forgery is in all three rather irregular. In the 81 par. the ear 
on the left hand side is lower down than the opposite one. At the wide end 
of the bugle-horn in the forgery of the 108 par. is 5 strokes to represent 
shading. 

1861. — Inscription: Porto Scrisorei , coloured impression , 40 paras blue, 80 
par. red. 



14 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAHPT. 


Newspaper Label. — Inscription : Porto Gazette, 5 paras black. 

The above three imitations emanate from Glasgow. None of them have 
got a thin stroke to join the two thick ones of the H together in Hap. The 
colouring is exceedingly thin and poor, and they are badly printed on nearly 
transparent paper. In the 5 paras the right hand bulls ear appears not to be 
finished. In the 40 p. both the right hand ear and horn is thinner than the 
opposite ones, and the right ear in the 40 p. and also the 80 p. points more 
to the top comer than the left hand ones. 

MOLDO WALLACHIA. 

1862 — Inscription : Franco Scrisorei eagle displayed and lull’s head over bugle 
horn, 30 par. blue. 

The forgers of this stamp have made a very flagrant error, which will at 
once detect it, viz : — by omitting the R in Scrisorei. Probably the stamp 
used by the engraver to copy from was much obliterated about that part. 


DENMARK. 


1852. — Inscription ; Kgl. Post Frimcerke 2 rigsbank skilling blue. 


Genuine. 

The M in Frimcerke is neatly printed. 

The mouthpiece of the horn is pointed to- 
wards the left hand top corner. 

The mouthpiece end of the horn is very 
thin. 


Forged. 

The second stroke, i. e., the first thick one 
in the M is clumsily done, and not so thick 
as the last stroke. 

The horn is only slightly curved from the 
middle to the mouthpiece, and therefore 
does not point up to the corner. 

The end is rather thicker. 


Essay.*— Read of Mercury, 4 R. B. S., (lj sch. c.) 

Essay.— Mead of King, 8 R. B, S., (2j sch. c.) ; colour brown, on a ground 
composed of diagonal blue strokes. 


Genuine. 

The figure 4 in Head of Mercury Stamp 
is like the written figure. 

The wing at the far side of the Mercury’s 
head is higher than the one nearest, so that 
a narrow piece of the whole length of the 
wing is perceptible. 

The King’s ear is only partly to he seen, 
the top half being covered by the hair. 


Forged. 

The figure 4 is like the usual printed, 
figure. 

There is only a very little of the far side 
wing to be seen. 


The King’s ear is wholly perceptible. 


DIJCHY OF SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN. 

1848. — 1 sch. blue, 2 sch. rose. 

There are very good imitations of the above old Provisional Government 
Stamps, which are well engraved and printed, but they are disfigured with 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


15 


great blotchy postmarks, whereas the genuine are very little postmarked. 
The genuine stamps have a thread made in the paper down the middle of the 
stamp, and the only practicable way to detect these forgeries is by taking off 
the paper which is affixed to the back of the stamp (which may be done by 
soaking the stamp in warm water, when it will easily come off), and the 
thread will be found to be inserted between the stamp and the paper. 

1864. — lj sch. blue. 

This stamp ia well imitated ; in fact, the very watermark in the paper is 
copied. The letters in the inscription are not so well done as in the genuine. 
The first stroke of the M in the inscription at bottom (4 S. R. M.) is very 
thin in the forgery. The H in H. R. Z. G. L. at the left side is not so large 
as the other letters and is badly formed. 


DUTCH INDIES. 

I hear of the 5 c. being forged, but as I have not yet seen a specimen, I 
must describe it from the description which was sent me. In the forgery 
the face of the king is not shaded, and on the collar and ear to the right 
there is very little shading. The forgery is not well executed, the shading 
being the worst, but it is well known the genuine is beautifully executed. 


FINLAND. 


Envelopes. — 5 hop blue , 10 
Genuine. 

The lines on the shield touch the outline 
above and below. 

Round the left and right side of the 
crown are 9 dots. 


hop rose; transversely oval. 

Forged. 

The lines do not touch the outline either 
above or below. 

Round the left and right side of the 
crown are 8 dots. 


Same as above .— 20 hop blach. 

This imitation appears to be of a greenish slate colour. Inside the wide 
end of the left hand horn, within two circles, is a thin mark, and at the top 
of it is a dot ; this is not so in the genuine. The eight stars also are very 
badly done in the forgery. 


FRANCE. 

Unpaid Letter Labels, 1863.— 15 centimes a percevotr, square. 

The inscription in the forgery is rather irregular, and the V in purcevoir 
is like a U. It appears to be a badly printed lithograph. 






GRANADA CONFEDERATION. 

1860. — Arms in circle ; 10 c. cinnamon, 20 c. blue. 

The "upper and middle compartments of the shield in the 10 c. forgery- 
are divided by only one line, whilst in the genuine, by either two or three lines. 
This one difference, I think, will suffice for to detect the above. The other 
stamp is rather better executed, hut the following deficiencies will be found : 
—The white dots round the circle are not of a uniform size, and the two 
stars, one at each end of the bottom inscription, are very much unlike each 
other. The right side one looks like a cross with a dot at the left hand top 
comer and a smaller one at the opposite corner. 

1861. — Arms in shield ; 2| cents black , 5 c. buff, 10 c. blue, 20 c. red, 1 peso rose. 

Genuine. Forgery. 

There are nine dots in the oval band con- There are only eight dots, one being in the 
tabling shield. centre, three on the left side, and four on 

the right. 

There is a dot after centavos . There is no dot after centavos excepting 

in the 6 c. 

The 20 c. is printed in redy-brown. It is printed in vermillion. 

1862. — Arms supported by wreath under nine stars ; coloured impression, 5 

cent orange, 10 c. blue, 20 c. red. 


In the forged 20 c. red the A of Nacionales is less than the other letters. 
The B also in Columbia is like a figure 8. The Na of Nacionales in the 
forged 5 c. is much less than the two end letters. In the forged 10 c. the 
letters E S in Nacionales touch each other, and the two right hand branches 
in the ornament at the right hand bottom corner touch each other. The 
above imitations have a forged look about them. The paper is very white 
and the ink very glaring. 


GREAT BRITAIN. 

Envelope, 1840. — Vignette by W. Mulready, It. A. ; upon the cover, coloured 
impression, red . ; Id. black, 'Ad. blue. 

The engraving at the back of the envelope is entirely missed out of both 
the imitations. These are mostly sold by continental dealers, who would 
not, I think, hesitate to sell them to English collectors. 


GREECE. 

1862. — Coloured impression on tinted paper, 1 lept light brown, 2 l. cinnamon , 
5 l. green, 10 l. red, 20 l. blue, 40 l. violet , 80 l. rose. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The circle round the dots is of the same The circle is very thin, and in most 
thickness, and very distinct throughout. places very indistinct. 

The dots in the circle round the head of The dots number about 75. 

Mercury number 88. 

The letters and Greek border are of vari- 
able thickness. 


The letters and Greek border are of equal 
thickness. 



HOW TO DETECT FOEGED STAMPS. 


17 


HAMBURG. 

1859 . — Arms behind every figure indicating value ; \ sch. blaclc, 1 sch., choco- 
late, 2 sch. red, 3 sch . blue, 4 sch. green , 7 sch. orange, 9 sch. yellow. 

1863. — 1| schilling mauve, 2J green. 

Genuine. 

In all of them the thin upper stroke in 


the K in Postmarke is longer than the lower 
one. 

In the \ the dot above I of Ein is the 
same size as the dot after schilling. 

In the | also the A of Hamburg does not 
touch the M. 


Forged. 

The thin upper stroke is in all cases less 
than the thick lower one. 

The dot after schilling is about twice as 
large as the other. 

The base of the A touches the M. 


HANOYER. 

1858.— Name Hannover, figure under crown , 3 pfennigs rose ; also same pat- 
tern 3 pf. green . 


Genuine. 

The lettering and crown is clear and well 
defined. 

The figure 3 is well shaped. 

There is shading at the ends of the band 
holding inscrip; ion. 


Forged. 

The inscription and crown is badly printed, 
being very much smudged. 

The figure 3 is badly shaped. 

Instead of shading there is only smudged 
blotches. 


INDIA. 


1854 . — Head of Queen to left, ^ anna red. 

There are three imitations of this very rare stamp. The first is simply 
the comparatively common 1 anna of the same issue with the value erased, 
and “ half ” neatly painted in its place. The ornaments in the corners of 
these two stamps being different, this may easily be detected hy comparing 
with the common 1 anna. The second imitation is printed from a forged 
block, and it may be detected in the same way as the above, as it appears to 
have been copied from the above-mentioned imitation. The other forgery is 
a very good one and I therefore append full description. 


Genuine. 

The two A’s of Anna are square at the 
top. 

The marks in the side borders are pretty 
large and triangular shaped. 

The inside white border is not narrow. 


Forged. 

The two A’s of Anna are pointed at the 
top. 

The marks are small circular dots. 

The inside white border is very narrow. 


Same design, 1 anna red. 

This forgery is too new looking, and the red is over bright. 



18 


HOW TO DETECT EOBGED STAMPS. 


IONIAN ISLANDS. 

I860. — \d. yellow, \d. line, 2d. lake, value not indicated. 

These forgeries are very blotched, and the inscription is irregularly printed. 
The last N in Ionikon is only about half the size of the first, and the two 
I’s are not the same size. The collector has little chance of being mistaken 
in the identity of these forgeries. 


LA GTJAIRA. 

1864. — Name , £ real pink, 2 reals green 


Genuine. 

The Q, of Paquete has a long curved tail. 
The 0 in Cabello is round. 

The waves are nicely engraved. 

The 8 in right hand top corner in the 
2 r is well shaped. 


Forged. 

There is hardly any tail. 

The 0 is circular. 

The waves do not seem to be well done. 
The 8 is badly shaped, and appears like a 
piece of ornament. 


LIBERIA. 


Name, Figure of Liberty seated in circle ; 6 cents pink, 12 c. blue, 24 c. green. 


Genuine. 


Forged. 


The clouds are very distinct. 

The C in cents is not under LI of Liberia 
in the 12 c. 

In the 6 c. the toe of Britannia does not 
touch the border. 


In the 6 c. and 24 c. the clouds are 
scarcely visible. 

The C is directly under the LI of Liberia. 
The toe touches the border. 


Part of the postmark is the word Monrovia. This part of the postmark is Monrowa. 

The same set of stamps are forged at another place, but are not so well 
executed. The shading on the rock in the forgery touches the BE of Liberia, 
and it may be observed that in all three stamps the lines of the background 
run the same way, but not so in the genuine. 

The 12 cent stamp numbers three imitations. In the third one the fol- 
lowing differences may be detected : — In the genuine a full view of the face 
of Britannia is given, but in the forged it is turned to the left. The C in 
Cents is directly under B of Liberia in the forged, but it is not so in the 
genuine. 


LIVONIA. 

Briefmarke, red impression with inscription in black on white paper. 
Pakenmarke , same design with green impression. 

In the forged green stamp the first K in Packenmarke is rather badly 
shaped, the bottom of the short part being not quite on a level with the front 
and long mark. The lines in the background are also blotched. The small 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


19 


white cross at the left hand bottom corner is not quite finished in the forged 
red stamp, as the right hand bottom stroke is wanting. The other small 
crosses are also badly finished. 

Red impression, green centre. 

The colour of this imitation is bright, but the ink with which it is printed 
appears to be very poor ; whereas in the genuine the ink is very good. The 
small white stars in each corner in the genuine have five distinct rays, but 
in the forgery the rays cannot be counted, being very indiscernible ; indeed, 
the left hand bottom one appears to be a square white dot. 


LUBECK. 

1859. — Name , \ sch. violet , 1 sch. orange red, 2 sell, brown, 2^ sell, red, 4 sch. 
dark green. 

Genuine. 

There is a dot after Tostmarke. 


There is no dot after Schilling. 

The toe does not touch the line. 

In the i sch. there is shading after Halber. 
In the 1 sch. the eagle’s tail is not pointed. 
The K of Lubeck in the 2 sch. does not 
touch the ornament on the side of it. 

The 2| has shading by zwei ein halber. 
The shading of the riband in the 4 sch. is 
neat. 


Forged. 

There is no dot after Postmarke in most 
of them. 

In each stamp there is a dot after schilling. 
The right hand toe of the eagle touches 
the line just above the E of Postmarke. 

The is no shading after Halber. 

The eagle’s tail is pointed. 

The K does touch the line. 

There is no shading by zwei ein halber . 
The shading of the riband is too thick. 


There is another forged set of the above, but it may easily be detected on 
account of the letters of inscription being coarse and irregular in size. 


LUXEMBURG. 


1859-63. — Name, arms in circle, 1 centime buff, 2 c. black, 4 c. yellow. 

The roughly executed forgeries of these stamps correspond with each other 
in the principal distinctions ; therefore if any one has a genuine stamp of 
either three (all of which are very common when genuine), they will easily 
be detected by comparison. The forgeries have a line running up the side, 
and are printed on thin paper. 


Name, arms in oval , 10 c. blue, 12 J c. 
green, 40 c. Vermillion. 

Genuine. 

The letters UX of Luxembourg do not 
touch each other at any part.. 

The paper is not thin. 

The thick stroke in the first U in Luxem- 
bourg is of equal thickness throughout. 


rose, 25 c. marone, 30 c. violet, 37^ c. 
Forged. 

The letters UX touch each other at top. 

The paper is very thin. 

The thick stroke in the U is rather thicker 
at the top than the bottom. 



20 


HOW TO DETECT EORGED STAMPS. 


MAURITIUS. 

1857. — Value not indicated , red , dark green, magenta , slate. 

These stamps are evidently imitated by the same person that forged the 
Barbadoes stamps without date, and the same discrepances may be observed. 
The colours also are not correct having a washy look. 


MEXICO. 


1857. — 2 reals green on white paper. 


Genuine. 

The name of the issuing State is printed 
in black on the right side of the stamp. 

The background is composed of lines close 
together. 

The ornaments at sides are neatly done. 


Forged, 

No name is printed at all on the side of 
the stamp. 

The background is solid. 

The ornaments at sides are badly done. 


Same issue . — J real line , 1 rl. yellow , 2 rs. green , 4 rs. red , 8 rs. violet. 

1861 issue. — Black impression on coloured paper , | rl., 1 rl., 2 rs., 
4 rs. red on yellow, 8 rs. green on brown, and several more of the 
same design, but fictitious colours. In all 20 varieties. 

The colouring of the above imitations is extremely poor and thin, and the 
lettering very indistinct and irregular. The top inscription is Medico instead 
of Megico. They are, in fact, so poorly executed that it is utterly impossible 
for them to victimize collectors. 


MODENA. 


Inscription : Posle Estense, eagle under crown, 5 c. green, 9 c. b. g. violet, 10 
c. rose, 10 c. brown, 1 5 c. violet, 1 5 c. yellow, 25 c. primrose, 40 c. 
blue. 1 lira white. 


Genuine. 

The claws of the eagle are both alike, and 
have only three toes. 

The letters of cent are short and thick. 

The ornaments at the right and left hand 
borders curl round at the ends. 

Printed on unglazed paper. 

The above are poor imitations and 
but those mentioned will suffice. The 
time, and appear to be better executed. 


Forged. 

The claws are represented by four short 
thick strokes pointing downwards. 

The letters of cent are long and thin. 

The ornaments do not curl round at the 
ends. 

Printed on glazed paper. 

[ could name many more differences, 
above stamps are also forged a second 
so that I append description. 


Genuine. 

The crown does not touch the head of eagle. 
The tail of eagle does not touch the legs. 
The eagle is properly shaped, and the 
feathers are neatly imitated. 


Forged. 

The crown touches the head of eagle. 

The tail touches the legs. 

The eagle is badly shaped, especially 
about the neck, which is too thick, and the 
feathers are blotchy. 



HOW TO DETECT EORGED STAMPS 



PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. 


1859 . — Arms ( cross on shield ), between two laurel branches, 5 cents green, 15 
c. purple, 20 c. violet , 40 c. rose, 80 c. orange. 


Genuine. 

The corners are divided into equal sizes 
by the cross. 

The point at the bottom of the shield is 
at the middle of the upright white line in 
the cross. 

The cross on the ball at the top of crown 
is very indistinct, and some distance from 
the border line. 


Forged. 

The lowest right hand corner is less than 
the others. 

The point is more to the left at the bottom 
of the white line. 

The cross on the ball is very clear and 
nearly touches the line. 


Newspaper Label. — Inscription “ Tassa Gazette ” encircling eagle; black 
impression, 10 cents. 

Genuine. Forged. 

Printed on unglazed paper. Printed on glazed paper. 

Printed from a wood block, and having a Lithographed, and the lines and inscrip- 
blotched and half finished appearance. tion very neat. 


MONTE VIDEO. 

Second issue. — Name, arms in circle; 120 cents blue, 180 c. green, 240 c. 
carmine. 

The forgeries under notice do not require a full description, as they are so 
badly executed and blotched in appearance, that it is impossible for them to 
deceive collectors. The ornaments in the corners are hardly perceptible, and 
the glory round the head is extremely blotched. 

Same as above ; 240 cents carmine. 

This is better executed than the above, but the colouring is too thin and 
poor. The four dots at the right hand top corner are much lower down than 
the opposite ones. The inscription all around also touches the lines above 
and below. 

1859. — 60 cents lilac, slate , brown, and pink. 

The following is the principal errors in this imitation, viz : the accent over 
the E in Centisinias is wanting — the ornaments in the corners are too large 
— and the letters of “ Correo ” on both sides of the stamp are thin and 
irregular in size. 

Same issue . — 80 cents orange, 180 c. green, 240 c. red. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The letters EVID in Montevideo do not 
touch any where. 

The ornament between the corner orna- 
ment and the M of Montevideo is as clear 
and well defined as the one between Correo 
and the same corner ornament. 


The letters EVID all touch one another 
at the top. 

The ornament is in most cases a thick 
stroke, but it is never so large and well 
shaped as the other one. 


22 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED 8TAMPT. 


NEVIS. 


1861. — Name, 1 d. lake. 


Genuine. 

The letters of Nevis are a fair size. 

The left arm of the female supporting the 
fainting one is held out straight to the 
standing one. 

There is a mineral spring coming from a 
rock in the back-ground. 


Forged. 

The letters are unreasonably large. 

The left arm is turned up to the standing 
female. 

There is no mineral spring, and the rock 
is represented by wavy lines all pointing 
downwards. 


NEW BRUNSWICK. 

1861. — Name , coloured impression ; 12£ c. llue ( steam vessel.) 

The engraver of this forgery evidently worked from a description, and I 
cannot congratulate him on his success. The steamship has no paddles, but 
is apparently propelled by a screw. The colour is also much fainter than the 
genuine one. 

Essay. — Name, lust of Connell (formerly Postmaster- General), Hack impres- 
sion on greyish paper. 

There are two imitations of this stamp, one of which is beautifully printed 
on India paper, and it may be detected by putting a drop of water on the 
stamp, when it will run as on blotting paper. The other imitation is a 
French photograph which may be detected in the same way as the 1 kr. 
black, Bavaria. (See Bavaria.) 


NEW SOUTH WALES. 

View of Sydney, coloured impression on white paper, 1*?. red, and 2d. pale Hue. 

In the forgeries the first I of Siegillum is shorter than the S, and it appears 
to touch the line above it ; the S touches the line beneath it. In the bottom 
right hand corner there is a square enclosing a cross, and in each corner of 
the square there is a small stroke, but the stroke in the right hand top corner 
in the same square is thicker than the others and blotched. 


NICARAGUA. 

1862. — Name , coloured impression, 2 centavos llue, 5 c. Hack. 


Genuine. 

The letters are remarkably clear. 

The U and A of Nicaragua just touch. 

The figures in the corners are all alike. 
The letters of Centavos are all the same 
size, except the I, which is a trifle larger, 
and the bottom of V is flat. 


Forged. 

The letters are indistinct. 

The U and A of Nicaragua are a rea- 
sonable distance from each other. 

The figures in the coiners differ very much. 
The letters are not all same size, and the 
bottom of V is pointed. 



The 5 c. is also forged at another place, and printed on India paper ; it 
may be detected by putting a drop of water on the paper, when it will run 
like as on blotting paper. 


NIE CALIDONIA. 

1860. — Name; 10 centimes grey. 


Genuine. 

The front part of the neck does not touch 
the border. 

Many of the letters of both top and bot- 
tom inscriptions touch at both top and bot- 
tom the lines enclosing them. 

The forehead touches the border enclosing 
the head. 


Forged. 

The front part of the neck touches the 
border. 

The letters of Nie Calodonie only touch 
the top line enclosing them, and 10 c. Postes, 
only touches the bottom line. 

The forehead does not touch the border. 


The photographs of this stamp, which are sold by French dealers, may be 
detected in the same manner as the black Bavaria. 


NORWAY. 

1850. — Inscription: Frimcerke , arms in a circle , coloured impression , A. skilling 
Hue. 

In this forgery the lettering is small and indistinct, the colour light blue 
ultramarine, and is printed by lithography, generally postmarked, and the 
postmark is far too clearly defined and printed. 


OLDENBURG. 

1852. — Name , black impression on coloured paper , i thaler blue , ,J thaler rose t 
and jo thaler yellow. 


Forged. 

The bottom edge is formed by rather large 
dots on the right side. 

The point of the small shield is just over 
the centre of the figure 1. 

The shading is very indistinct in the band 
in the right hand lower portion. 

There is a larger portion of the divisional 
line of J to the right of the figure 1 than the 
left. 

All the above, also 1858 issue, J gros green, 1 gros blue, 2 gr. rose, 3 gr. 
yellow. 1860 issue, J gr. orange, T green, J redbrown. 

These forgeries are wretchedly executed. The genuine are neatly designed 
and executed, but these are miserable lithographs. The inscription is bad 
and irregular, the colouring bad, the printing smudgy, and hardly any 
shading in the whole lot. 


Genuine. 

The bottom edge of the mantle (surround- 
ing the shield), is formed by very small dots. 

In the iJ the point of the small upper 
shield is over the right side of the figure 1 

of .S- , 

The shading in the band, in the 30 is very 
perceptible. 

The figure 1 in the stamp above 15 is 
in the middle of the divisional line. 


24 


HOW TO DETECT FOKGED STAMPS. 


OTTOMAN EMPIRE. 

Name in Turkish characters inscribed in a crescent ; black impression on 
coloured paper ; 20 paras yellow , 1 piastre lilac , 2 piastres blue , 
6 piastres rose. 

These forgeries may be detected by a close examination of the Turkish 
character in the crescent immediately beneath the Sultan’s autograph. The 
imitation of the Turkish inscription consists merely of dots and flourishes, 
but without the slightest semblance of the original. 


PARAGUAY. 

These stamps are very mysterious, asjit is not really known whether they 
were ever issued, or whether they are simply essays. Out of the four best 
catalogues that are published, two call them essays and the other two mention 
3 stamps as being issued for postal uses. As it is not required of me to give 
any opinion respecting that moot point, my purpose merely being to detect 
forgeries, I must give a description of six of them which I know to be 
forgeries. The colours are respectively red, green, grey, black, yellow, and 
brown. The stars in the corners are badly formed ; the lettering on inscrip- 
tion also is badly executed, the letters being thin and smudged. The pole 
above the lion’s head is represented by a white mark ; and the circle of dots 
at the right side of the oval are larger than those on the left. 


PARMA. 

First issue. — Coloured impression on white paper , 5 ce. yellow , 15 c red ; 
black impression on coloured paper , 5 c. yellow , 15 c. red . 

Genuine. Forged. 

The stamps are very smudgy, especially They are very clearly printed, 
the coloured impression ones. 

The background consists of white crossed The background is composed of rather 
lines, which makes it appear like small rough looking large and small dots, 

square dots. 

PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. 


1859. — Coloured impression on white paper, 5 c. green , 10 c. brown , 20 c. blue , 
40 c. red, 80 c. orange ; black impression , 6 c. carmine , 9 c. blue. 


Genuine. 

All the lines forming the border are 
concave. 

The middle line in the border is nearer to 
the outside than to the inside line. 

The lines are rather broken. 


Forged. 

The 4 short lines, are quite straight, and 
the four longer ones concave. 

The middle line is nearer to the inside 
line. 

The lines are too sharp and neat. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


25 


PONY EXPRESS. 


1, 2, 3, and 4 dollars all in five colours. 


There are two separate forgeries of these stamps, but the first with which 
I will treat are the Hamburg emanations and which are the most widely 
circulated. In the forgery the second thin stroke in the N in Pony is thinner 
than the first. In the genuine the breath is shown to issue out of the horses 
nostrils, but nothing of the sort is perceptible in the imitation. These two 
differences I think will suffice for the above. In the other imitations the 
breath which ought to issue out of horses nostrils cannot be seen, and the P 
in Pony is badly shaped. The ornamentation in the corners also is very 
blotchy and badly defined. 


PRUSSIA. 

Envelopes, 1851 . — Head of King ; 7 s . gr. Vermillion. 


Genuine. 

Colour is vermillion. 

The two threads across the stamp are 
worked in the paper. 

On the neck of the King there is the word 
Schilling in very small letters. 


Forged. 

Colour, dull red. 

The threads are inserted between the em- 
bossed paper and some thin paper pasted on 
the back. 

The word Schilling is wanting. 


ROMAGNA. 

I860. — | bai yellow , 1 grey, 2 yellow , 3 dark green , 4 red, 5 lilac, 6 green, 
8 rose, 20 blue. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The paper is rather coarse, and the colour The paper is very glaring in colour and 
is not 6hiny. pretty fine and smooth. 

The two dots after Bai : are square. The two dots after BAI : are round. 


ROMAN STATES. 

Inscription : Franco Bollo Postale ; 50 bag. blue . 

In this stamp there is a rather large ornament in each comer, and in the 
ornament there is two short lines running from the corner and pointing 
towards the centre of the stamp. In the forgery this is correct in three cor- 
ners, but in the left hand bottom corner there is only one stroke in the 
ornament, and the other stroke is represented by a very small dot touching 
the enclosing line. In the genuine the letters TAL of Postale touch each 
other at the bottom, but in the forgery the letters TA only touch each other. 



26 HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


SANDWICH ISLANDS. 

I860.- — Inscription: Inter Island Hawaiian Postage; 1 c. blue , black, 
2 c. blue , black. 

The simple design of these stamps render imitation very easy, and the for- 
geries I am about to describe being very close copies, it is extremely difficult to 
detect them. The large figure 2 in the 2 c. is thicker in the original than 
in the forgery, whilst the C in the 1 cent is Very broad, bat only moderately 
broad in the imitation. In the 2 c. forgery the tail of the 2 projects a little 
outwards, with a rounded turn, but in the genuine the tail does not point 
out any farther than on a level with the back of the 2, and it is perfectly, 
straight, not being curved as in the forgery. In the genuine 1 cent the 
letters are all pretty thin and neat, especially the 1, which has a long and 
thick stroke at the top. In the forgery the letters are thicker and rather 
smudged, and the stroke on the top of 1 is very thin and much shorter than 
the genuine. 


Name Honolulu , bust of King , 5 c. blue. 


Genuine. 

The whole face is thickly dotted, except- 
ing the nose. 

The six buttons on the king’s coat on the 
left side of the leaves are very distinct and 
white. 


Forged. 

There is a small white place under the 
left side of mouth which is not dotted. 

These buttons are very indistinct and 
four can be perceived. 


Same as above . — 13 c. red. 


This forgery is lithographed, but the genuine is printed from steel dies. 
In the genuine the figure 8 in the right hand space is on a level with the 
letters of States, but in the forgery it is above. There is no dot after the 
words “ United States ” in the forgery, but there is a dot in the genuine. 


SAXONY. 


1850 . — Name Sachsen; 3 pfennigs red. 


There are two imitations of this stamp ; the first, which I now describe, is 
decidedly the worst executed, and may be detected by a close observation of 
the ornamentation in the large figure 3. In the genuine it is composed 
of ornaments very like small figures 3. The other and better imitation I 
more fully describe. 


Genuine. 

The word Pfennige is printed in the centre 
of the side label. 

There is a stop after Franco. 

The ornamentation in the background 
touches the figure. 


Forged. 

The word Pfennige is too high, as there 
is more space below than above it. 

No stop after Franco. 

There is a white margin all round the 
figure. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


27 


1851 . — Head of King to right in oval ; printed in black on coloured paper* 
1 n. gr. rose, 2 n. gr. blue, 3 n. gr. yellow. 


These are very like Messrs. Spiro ' 
to come from Liverpool, only in very 
totally obliterated with post marks. 

Genuine. 

At both ends of the label enclosing 
Sachsen there is, more or less, some very 
fine shading. 

The ground within the oval when closely 
examined will be found to form fine lines 
very close together, so much so, that it 
appears to be solid. 

The numerals of value at sides and bot- 
tom are all one size in each respective 
stamp. 


brother’s lithographs, but they appear 
small quantities however, and almost 


Forged. 

It is not shaded here, but there is a solid 
mass which was perhaps intended for the 
shading. 

This background in the oval is entirely 
solid. 


The figure of value at bottom in the 1 n. 
gr. is less than the others, but in the other 
two stamps it is larger than the side ones. 


SPAIN'. 

First issue. — Bear on tree , and printed in bronze , 1 cuartos, 2 c., and 3 c. 

Gbnuine. Forged. 

The centre band contains seven dots or The band only contains five dots, 
stars. 

The band enclosing bear and tree is oval The band is quite circular, 
shaped. 

The above is a very poor imitation and I might name many more distinc- 
tions. There is another and better set of forgeries in the market, which I 
now also describe. 


Genuine. 

There are two small ornaments below the 
third bunch of leaves on the left hand side. 

There is a star in the oval, exactly op- 
posite the above small ornament. 


Forged. 

There is only one ornament below the 
bunch. 

This star is on a level with the top of the 
leaves of the bunch, below the third bunch. 


1850. — 6 cuartos black. 

This is an exceedingly bad imitation, being badly lithographed and printed. 
The original is pretty well engraved, and the inscription is regular in size 
and thickness. The ink with which the imitation is printed is very thin and 
not so black as the genuine. 

1851. — 2 reals red. 

This fac-simile, although executed by the same persons as the above, is 
about the best Spanish forgery extant. The colour is not what would be 
desirable, yet the printing is very good and neat. In the genuine the orna- 
ments in all the four corners are like each other, but in the imitation there 
is considerable difference both in size aud shape. 


28 HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


1851. — 6 c. black . 

This is one of Spiro’s worst imitations, suffice it is to say that in the for- 
gery the C of Cuartos is only half the size of the R, and that all the corner 
ornaments are blotched. The next is the 

1852. — 5 reales green. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The ornaments are all alike in the angles. The ornament in the right side lower 

angle is incomplete. 

There is a stop after Correos. There is no stop after Correos. 

The first 0 of Correos is smaller than the The first 0 is larger than the second, 

second. 

1853. — 5 re ale 8 green. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The small circles round the oval are all These circles yary in size, 
of equal sizes 

The C of Correos is on a leyel with the The C appears to the naked eye to be 

other letters of that word. almost touching the line underneath, and it 

is lower down than the other letters. 

1855. — 6 c. red. 

There are two different forgeries of this stamp. In one the letters of 

inscription are thin, in the other thick. In the best looking imitation the 

A and N of Franco touch each other at the base, and the lines in the corners 
outside the oval are very thick and far between. In the other imitation, 
which is an emanation from Hamburg ; the colouring is very washy looking, 
and the Queen’s head is very unnatural looking. There is only a few dots on 
the left side of the neck and none about the chin. 

1 854. — 5 reales green. 

In this imitation the bottom half of the figure 8 is larger than the upper 
one, but in the genuine they are equal in size ; another noticeable feature is 
the 4 in 1854, which is longer than the other three figures. 

Official Labels, 1854. — § onza orange , 1 rose, 4 green, l libra blue. 

Genuine. Forged. 

This dot is extremely small. 

The lion’s leg is formed of only one rather 
thick stroke. 

The cross touches the line in all the four 
stamps. 

rose, 4 green, 1 libra blue. 

Forged. 

The C does not touch the I anywhere. 

It is not remarkably clear, in some places 
rather coarse. 


In the | and 4 there is a large dot after 
the word onza. 

In the left lower quarter of the shield the 
lion’s right front leg is composed of two thin 
lines. 

The cross on the top of the crown does 
not touch the line above ; in the 1 onza it 
appears to the naked eye to do so, but it 
really does not. 

1855. — Oval ; § orange, 1 
Genuine. 

The C of Official evidently touches the I 
after it. 

The stamp is very clearly shaded. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS 


29 


SPANISH POSSESSIONS 


CUBA, HAYTI, AND PORTO RICO. 

1857 . — Laureated Head of Queen Isabella IT. to right in circle , 'printed in 
colour on white paper , ^ rl. plata f. blue , 1 rl. plataf. green, 2 rl. 
plata rose. 


Genuine. 

The number of small white dots round 
the edge of the circle enclosing Queen’s 
head, is 73. 

The small ornaments in each comer are 
round 

In the top frame at each end of the in- 
scription, is a white dot. 


Forged. 

The number of white dots is 68. 


The ornaments are no uniform shape at 
all, some being square, some triangular, some 
like stars, and others a mere blotch. 

This dot is at neither end of the inscrip- 
tion in the f, and it is only at one end in 
the 2 rl. plata. 


SWITZERLAND. 

FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION. 

1850 . — Black impression, 5 rappen, 10 rap. 

1852 . — Same device , 5 rap‘, 15 rap . 

Genuine. Forged. 

The letters of Rayon do not touch each The letters of Rayon nearly all touch one 
other anywhere. another at the base. 

The four ends of the cross are all about The right side end of the cross is decidedly 

one size. the least. 

In addition to these two points, the forgeries are all so covered with 
obliterating marks that the design of the stamps can hardly be seen, whilst 
in the genuine, although they are sometimes well postmarked, yet the design 
is almost always wholly perceptible. 


GERMAN AND FRENCH CANTONS. 

Inscription : Poste Locale, 2 J rappen . 

In this stamp there is a small perpendicular line under 2| aud R P, hut 
in the imitation it is omitted. The paper on which the forgery is printed 
appears to be of a blueish colour, whereas in the genuine it is white. 


RASLE. 

Inscription: Stadt Post Basel,, 2£ rap green. 

This forgery is neatly executed, and the surest test for detecting it, is by 
observing the ground. In the genuine it is formed of alternate blue and 
white dots, whereas in the forgery it is composed of a ground, uniform blue. 



30 HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


GENEVA. 

There are forgeries of all the Geneva stamps issued, and owing to the 
considerable differences between the genuine ones, it makes it impossible to 
give a description of any differences which may exist between the original 
and the imitations. The only sure way of detecting one or two of them is 
by observing the paper, the genuine 5 cent green is printed on white paper, 
but the forgery is printed on rather bluish tinted paper. The genuine 5 c. 
dark green is on extremely dark blue paper. The other forgeries are im- 
possible to detect without they are submitted to some one who is well 
conversant with forgeries. The following is a description of Spiro’s emana- 
tions : — The UX of Lux touch each other at the top. The shading round 
INS at the top is blotchy. The second E in Tenebras is larger than the first. 
The end of the band containing inscription above the shield touches the 
enclosing line at the right hand side, but not at the left. 


NEUECHATEL. 

Inscription : Poste Locale , white cross on red ground , 5 cents. 

Genuine. Forged. 

The label containing inscription above the The label is very close to the top, and the 
cross is some distance from the top, and the three pointed ornaments are as broad as the 
two three pointed ornaments at each end of label, 
the label are not so broad as the label. 


VATJD. 

Same as above with Post Horn, 4 c. } and 5 c. } black impression . 
Genuine. Forged. 

The top of the post horn on the right side The top of the horn is turned inwards, 
is slightly turned outwards, and the left end and the left end of it is further off the scroll, 
of it almost touches the border of the scroll. 

The letters of inscription Poste Locale The letters are short and rather blotchy, 
are long and neat. 


WINTERTHUR. 

Inscription: Orts-Post , Poste -Locale^ 2^ rappen } black impression. 

This is a very nicely executed facsimile. There are two varieties of the 
genuine, one with the horn longer than the other. In the forgery there is 
no stop after the word Post, and the rope or chain holding up the cross is 
composed of six circles. The genuine has a stop after Post, and the chain 
holding up the cross is composed of eight circles or links. 



HOW TO DETECT FOBGED STAMPS. 31 


ZURICH. 

1843. Essays. — 4 and 6 rappen, name , large figure indicating value. 

In the above forgeries the horizontal red strokes that are painted over the 
large figure and the background, are more numerous and nearer together on 
the left, side of the large figure than on the right; in fact there are about 
two to one. All the imitations I have seen are post marked, but I am 
assured that no stamps were issued in Switzerland until 1850, so the above 
can only be essays. 


1856. — Name ; 4 rappen , Local Taxe. 

There are two imitations of this stamp. The first (Spiro’s) has the T of 
“Taxe” almost touching the line above, and the whole letters of “Local 
Taxe ” are smudged. In the top right corner there is a small square with 
five dots ; the middle dot is about twice the size of the others. The X in 
“ Taxe ” is not so large as the E following. 

In the other forgery, which is better executed, there is no hyphen between 
the words “ Local Taxe,” but in the genuine there is. The small semi- 
circles and ornaments in the border, and also the four corner squares, are 
much thicker and darker than the rest of the stamp, whereas in the genuine 
all the circles are of the same thickness, both in the border and in the corner 
squares. 

Cantonal Taxe , 6 rappen. 

Spiro’s imitation of this stamp may be detected by observing that the. 
hyphen joining the words “ Cantonal Taxe ” is omitted, and the three top 
ornaments and semi-circles in the border at the right side are much larger 
than the three top ones on the opposite side. 

The other imitation shows the following inaccuracies, viz : there is no 
hyphen joining the words “Local Taxe,” it is printed on rather blue glazed 
paper,” the border is composed of four thin lines. In the genuine there is a 
hyphen joining “Local Taxe,” and it is printed on rather dirty white un- 
glazed paper. The border is composed of three thin black lines. 


TRINIDAD. 

Value not indicated , crimson , blue slate. 

These forgeries are exceedingly bad lithographs. The characters and 
inscription are too small, and the colours very thin and poor. 



32 


HOW TO DETECT FOBGED STAMPS. 


TUSCANY. 

Lion on white paper , 1 qrnttr, 1 soldo, 1 crazier, 2 era., 4 era., 6 era., 9 era., 
( Provisional Government ), 5 cent, 10 c., 20 c., 40 c., 80 c. 

Genuine. Forged. 

On rather coarse and unglazed paper. On very smooth paper. 

There is a water mark in the paper. There is no water mark in the paper. 

In the Provisional Government stamps The cross is hardly perceptible, 
there is a cross on the top of the crown. 

There is another forgery of the 1 quattr black, which would have been 
pretty well executed had the left hand inscription (Franco Bollo) not been 
left out. It is usually sold as a rarity. 


TWO SICILIES. 
SICILY. 


1859. — | gr. orange, 1 gr. olive, 2 gr. Hue, 5 gr. red, 10 gr . dark blue, 20 gr. 
black, 50 gr. dark red. 


There are two forged sets of the above stamps In the first set I describe, 
it appears that the forger has only had a part of the set to forge the whole 
seven stamps from. 


No. 1 FORGERIES. 


Genuine. 

In the half gr. the numeral of value is like 
this 

The colour of the 1 gr. is orange, and the 
50 gr. is dark red. 

There is a dot after Sicilia in the whole 
set. 

The background is formed of rather rough 
crossed lines. 


Forged. 

The half is like this \. 

Both these stamps are coloured red. 

There is no dot after Sicilia. 

The background in some of them is solid. 


No. 2 FORGERIES. 


Genuine. 

The B of Bollo does not reach as far as 
the corner of the border enclosing the head. 

The background is composed of crossed 
lines. 

The dot after Sicilia is generally wanting, 
always very indistinct. 


Forged. 

Part of the B comes past the left hand 
corner of the border enclosing the head. 

The background is quite solid. 

This dot is always very distinct. 


PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. 


October 1860 . — \ tornese blue. 

In this forgery there is wanting a small G, which ought to be in the bot- 
tom white line almost under the half. The head which ought to be at the 
juncture of the three legs is also wanting. 



HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


33 


November , 1860 — \ tornese blue . 

The small G which is wanting in the above forgery is also omitted in this, 
and in the genuine the outline of the three legs and fleur-de-lis as in the 
first issue, can be seen, but it is rather indistinct, whereas in the forgery no 
traces of anything of the sort can be observed. There are two imitations of 
this stamp. The other is by the Hamburg forgers, and is a very poor imita- 
tion; it may be detected in the same manner as the above. I may also say 
that the inscription is very irregular and blotched. 


NAPLES. 

1 857.— J grano , 1 gr., 2 gr,, 5 gr ., 10 gr. 20 gr., 50 gr. ; printed in lake on 
white paper . 


Genuine. 

Printed on rough coarse looking paper. 

The horse’s mane is composed of a white 
clear space like the neck, with a line to 
divide the mane from the neck. 

The three fleurs-de-lis are all much like 
each other. 


Forged. 

Printed on fine white smooth paper. 

The horse’s mane is thickly shaded. 

There is more or less difference in all the 
stamps between the three fleurs-de-lis, some 
are smaller than others, or some are not so 
clear as others. 


VENEZUELA. 


1863 . — Eagle in circle , ^ real 

Genuine. 

There is a dot after Real. 

The letters of Real are not so large as 
those of Federation. 

None of the letters of Venezaluna touch 
the line of the scroll underneath. 


yellow, l rl . blue, 2 rls. green. 

Forged. 

There is no dot after Real. 

The letters of Real are of the same size 
and thickness as those of Federation. 

Some of the letters touch the line. 


WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 

Name, a swan naiant, 1 d. black , 2d. pink, 2d. blue , 6 d. green , 6d. brown red. 

Genuine. Forged. 

All the letters are flat at the ends. Nearly all the letters are round and 

pointed at the ends and badly engraved. 

The background is very elaborately . Background consists of straggling dots, 
executed. 

The letters of inscription are very regular , The letters are somewhat irregular in 
in size and shape. shape, especially the A’s in Postage and 

Australia, no two being alike. 



34 


HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. 


WURTEMBURG. 


1850. — Square inscription : Wurtemburg, 1 kreuzer buff, 3 kr. yellow , 6 hr. 
green , 9 kr . rose. 


Genuine. 

At the top of the U in Wurtemburg, there 
are two dots. 

The ornaments just outside of the dia- 
mond touch, or nearly always touch, the 
corners of the inner square. 

There is a dot after the large figure 3 in 
the diamond. 


Forged. 

In the 3 kr. there is only one , and in the 
other stamps there is none. 

The ornaments are a good distance from 
the comer. 

There is no dot after the figure 3, 


1850. — Name; 18 kr. neutral. 

This is a very good imitation as regards execution, but the colour of the 
paper is reddish purple instead of neutral. The number of lines from the 
top to the bottom are 23, but there are 25 in the genuine. 


Returned Letter Label, — Inscription'. Commission Fur Retourbriefe ; black. 

The forged emanation from Hamburg of this stamp is beautifully litho- 
graphed. In the genuine there is a dot after “ Retourbriefe,” but it is 
omitted in this fac-simile. The two lower ornaments in the forgery between 
the oval and the square ornament in the corner are very unlike each 
other in shape. 

1 here is another imitation of this stamp which is bad to detect ; in it, how-' 
ever, the dot after “Retourbriefe” is omitte 1, and it is printed on white 
paper, whereas it must be remembered that the genuine is in all cases on 
white paper with a bluish tinge in it. 




ADDENDA. 


+ 

The following counterfeits have come under notice too late for insertion 

in their proper places. 

♦ 


.BADEN. 

1855. — Inscription: Baden Freimarke, 1 kreuzer white. 


Genuine. 

The minute inscriptions at sides are very 
neatly executed. 

The comer ornaments are all like each 
other in size and shape and neatly executed. 

The lettering of Friemarke is a uniform 
size, and neat and regular. 


Forged. 

The inscriptions at sides are exceedingly 
poorly done, and it is utterly impossible to 
read them. 

The corner ornaments are very much un- 
like each other, and badly done. 

The first R in Freimarke is larger than 
the second R, and the whole word is care- 
lessly executed. 


BRAZIL, 

1861. — Oblong Roman figures indicating value, printed in black , 10 reis, 20, 
30, 90, 180. 


Genuine. 

The figures are very distinct, especially 
the black shading. 

The outside enclosing line is very straight 
and well defined in the whole set. 

The numeral of value is in all the stamps 
well shaped. 


Forged. 

The black shading of the figures is not 
well defined, and it runs into the background. 

This line is crooked and broken in several 
places ; in the right hand top corner of most 
of the stamps it runs into the line within it. 

The 9 in the 90 reis is leaning towards 
the left and is very badly formed. 


Probably the 300 and 600 reis of the same issue are forged, but I have 
not yet seen a specimen. I would however beg to caution collectors against 
the same, and if they are forged, which is very probable, the above descrip- 
tion will no doubt suffice to detect them. 



ADDENDA, 


36 


CORRIENTES. 

I hear of the Corrientes stamp being forged, hut I have not yet had an 
opportunity of seeing a copy. I understand, however, that the imitations 
are much better executed than the genuine, and that there is great dis- 
similarity in the paper. I merely mention this to put collectors on their 
guard against this facsimile, but if they should see two copies of this stamp 
unlike each other, they need not conclude that one of them is forged or vice 
versa , as the genuine stamps are printed in plates of eight, and all of them 
are slightly different in design. 


GERMANY. 


NORTHERN STATES. 


1850. — Inscription'. Freimarke, large numeral of value in square, printed in 
black on red brown paper , £ silb. grosch. 

Genuine. Forged. 


In each of the four corners of the inner 
square, there is a small shield with numeral 
of value thereon neatly executed. 


The small horns in the four corners are 
all very much alike. 


The numeral of value on the shield is 
wretchedly done, in the two lower corners 
especially. In the left lower corner the 
mark between 1 and 4 thus % is entirely 
missing, and in the opposite corner it bears 
no resemblance to a figure. 

These horns hardly resemble each other. 
The small end of the one in the top right 
comer is very short and blotchy, whilst 
the small end of the lower one on the same 
side is much larger. 


There are several more differences, but the above will suffice. The forgery, 
although it appears at first sight to be an exceedingly good imitation, yet 
the execution bears no comparison with the genuine, the small letters on the 
sides not being near so well executed. 



FICTITIOUS STAMPS. 


The stamps I mention under this head, are: — 

1. STAMPS WHICH NEVER EXISTED AS BONA-FIDE POSTAGE STAMPS, 
BUT WERE ORIGINATED BY FORGERS. 

The first mentioned stamps are all purely imaginary, and appear to have 
been executed more for the inexperienced collector, than for the victimizing 
of Collectors in general. I think it is not requsite to give a full description 
of them, so I merely append a list, with sufficient descriptions however to 
detect them. 

Bavaria. — Figure 3 in a circle ; black impression. 

Caprera. — Inscription : Postal Capera Italin ; 1 scudo. 

Confederate States. — Head of Davis to right in oval ; 5 c. red and black. 
Japan. — Several stamps all different sizes and colours. Design, imitation of 
a French horn. 

Jerusalem. — Inscription in hieroglyphical figures, design Pyramids in square. 
Mexico. — Pretended stamp to frank from Acapulco in Mexico to San Fran- 
cisco in California. Name, McRobish & Co . ; blue and pink. 
Nashville. — 5 c. grey. 

Turkish. — Crescent and star ; 6 bronze olive 3 mura red. Golden fleece, 
letters, J . E. below. 

U.S. Mormon Stamp. — Head of Brigham Young. Inscription : Utah five 
cents Postage ; red and green. 

U.S. Local Stamps. — Blood’s Despatch, eagle and dove, Clinton’s Penny Post 
Clark & Co.’s Box, Clemin’s Dispatch, Cressman & Co.’s Penny 
Post, Carrier’s 1 c. Despatch, De Ming’s Penny Post, Davis & Co ’s 
Post, Floyd’s Penny Post, G. Carter’s Dispatch, Ker’s City Post, 
Paid Eagle Post at Adam’s Express, Priest’s Dispatch, Royal 
Post, Steven’s 1 c. Despatch, Well’s Penny Post, 

2. STAMPS WHICH WERE NEVER INTENDED FOR POSTAL USE. 

The stamps in this class are those which were never intended for postal 
uses, but which are, however, designedly sold by dealers as lona-fide postage 
stamps. Some of them are Receipt and Bill stamps and some are trade 
labels, &c. 


FICTITIOUS STAMPS. 


38 


Austria. — Complimentary Labels, which are intended to fill up the proper 
number of stamps on a sheet — 47 varieties. 

Bavaria. — The whole issues of 1851 and 1862 are printed in black, and are 
called “ Tribers destruction.” 

Berne. — ISTame : Canton Berne, Bear on Shield; 10 rap yellow, 3 r. blue, 
Receipt stamps. 

Brunswick. — Stamps on the Receipts given for registered letters, 6 pf. red, 
lake, £ gr. red. 

Denmark. — Inscription : — Thiele at sides ; black impression. 

France. — Several trade labels with Head of Emperor and French inscriptions. 
Geneva. — Man with spear leaning on a shield, various colours, Receipt 
stamps. 

Iceland. — Trade labels, various colours. Design : Bear in shield, Name : 
Vulnere. 

Jamaica. — Several Bill stamps. 

Ocean Postage. — Six varieties. Inscription : Ocean Penny Postage, adver- 
tisements for bringing the universal system of the Ocean Penny 
Postage into notice. 

Zurich. — Various values, all Receipt stamps. 

3. STAMPS WHICH HAYE BEEN CHANGED IN COLOUR BY CHEMICALS- 

The stamps under this head are mostly comparatively common stamps, 
which have been changed in colour by a peculiar chemical process, and then 
sold as either rare undiscribed varieties, proofs, or essays. The only safe 
method to guard against such forgeries is, by refusing to buy any as such 
that are not mentioned in the best catalogues. I herewith append a list of 
all such stamps I have either met with or heard of. 

Argentine Confed : — 1861, 10 c. green changed to blue. 

1850, 9 kr. blue changed to green. 

Austria. — 1858, Newspaper stamp, lavender changed to a dirty grey. 

Baden. — 1850, 6 krs. green changed to yellow. 

,, 1855, 9 krs. pink changed to white. 

Bavaria. — 1851, 9 krs. green changed to pale lemon. 

Belgium. — 1849, 20 c. blue changed to black. 

,, 1 c. to blue. 

Bremen. — 1855, 5 grote pink to white. 

„ „ 7 gr. yellow to grey. 

British Guiana, 1853, 4 c. blue to black. 

Brunswick. — 1852, 2 s. gr. blue to black. 

Confederate States. — 1862, 10 c. blue to black. 

France. — 1854, 5 cents green to blue. 

„ ,, 20 c. blue .to black. 



FICTITIOUS STAMPS. 


39 


Germans’, South. — 1860, 3 kr. blue to green. 

„ „ 1 kreuzer to blue. 

Greece. — 20 lepta blue to black. 

Hanover. — 1858, 1 guten gr. green to yellow. 

Holland. — 1852, 5 cents blue to black. 

Italy. — 15 c. to green impression on yellow paper. 

Modena. — 10 c. rose to violet (there is a 10 c. violet stamp, but most of 
those sold at present are chemical varieties. 

Newfoundland. — 2nd issue, 3d. green to black. 

New Zealand. — I d. dark brown. 

Nova Scotia. — 1860, 1 cent black to green. 

Oldenburg. — 1851, 1 silb. gr green to yellow. 

„ 1858, ^ gros. green to grey. 

,, ,, 2 „ red to white. 

„ 1857, 2 s. gr. blue to black. 

Prussia. — 1858, 4 plug, green to blue. 

,, „ 1 silb. gr. pink to white. 

„ ,, 3 silb. gr. yellow to grey. 

Romagna. — 1851, 20 bai blue to black. 

Saxony. — 1851, 1 n. gr. rose to white. 

„ „ 2 n. gr. blue to black. 

„ „ 3 n. gr. yellow to white. 

Switzerland. — Rayon II., 10 rappen yellow to slate colour. 

United States.~ 1861, 10 cent green to blue. 

„ „ 1 cent blue to black. 

Wurtemberg. — 1850, 9 krs. rose to white. 

, 1860, 6 kr. green to blue. 






















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